Recently I gave a simple suggestion for a runner to take their easy day pace from 8:40-8:50 to a more appropriate 9:30+ for their “easy” runs and was so pleased to read back
“Thank you. I ran last night at 9:35 and felt like I could have ran forever. Thank you so much for your advice.”
It’s OK to slow down, people! It’s actually preferable! Take your 5k race pace and add 2-3 minutes or your marathon race pace and add 1-2 minutes onto them for a nice suggestion on an easy day pace, BUT you can’t really go too slow on those days!
One way you can slow down a bit more is to set a speed alert on your GPS, so if you do start running too fast it’ll beep at you. Another would be to use heart rate, where a very rough guide would be to set an alert if your HR goes over 180-age=max for an easy run. I like to run with my mouth closed and I’ve had some runners comment positively on practicing that, as well!
Because, seriously. This runner’s 10k time is a minute slower than mine per mile and they were trying to run their easy runs at the same speed I do!
That, my friends, is not an easy run.
-Coach Kyle